Tucking into the most delicious full English this morning I was reminded that I had intended but forgotten, last night, to address a minor inconvenience - a phenomon that no doubt has a proper name and a biological explanation but that we call sausage fingers! The gradual swelling of the digits during the course of any walk longer than a couple of miles is probably not uncommon (at least I hope it's not just Stephen and I that are weird) but I haven't yet found a way to resolve it short of walking all day with my hands flung to the heavens in a sort of 'Hallelujah, praise the Lord' kind of way and so, with the intention simply to alleviate any discomfort, had decided that what I needed to do was remove my rings. After breakfast therefore I set to with the sun tan lotion thinking that this would be a good way of sliding said restricting bands off. First the silver signet ring that's been around since I was 12 was dispatched, followed swiftly by my eternity ring but that was the end of the game. My wedding ring simply refused to budge. I tried soap, moisturiser, brute force and .... gave up. I decided that this was a sign and that my wedding ring was intended to stay put and that was that. The sausage situation was destined to remain with me - and so was Stephen. Awww, bless.
Anyway, enough indulgence, about this walk... The day had dawned hot and sunny again. We learnt that it was predicted to be the hottest October day on record in the Cotswolds. Not quite believing our luck, we set off leaving Stanton behind us en route for Cleeve Hill some 13 miles distant. It's been a D, E, F day.
D is for of Degrees - of temperature, of ascent and descent, and of difficulty. As we passed through Stanway, climbed towards Beckbury Camp and the unexpected monument we felt on top of the world. The burning question at this stage of the day was how to explain the fascinatingly furrowed fields. First the theory was that these were limestone relics of a sea bed, then we decided they were probably where giant veg were grown before realising that the superb 'trailblaizer' guide we had been given, laid out the solution in black and white - medieval ploughing humps! (I feel a Google moment coming on) And so the day continued....
Next stop was Hailes Abbey followed by, at lunchtime, our arrival into Winchcombe, familiar territory thanks to the Murder Mystery Trail I wrote there just over a year ago and which remains a popular favourite. After lunch we climbed again to Belas Knapp (the guide book rather amusingly insists at this point that there should be 'no cheating - go round the field') and onward to Cleeve Hill. At one stage we were directed to walk beneath a line of pylons - not you might think the most attractive of landmarks but this turned out to be a defining moment. We stopped, albeit biefly. So spectacular were the views (with the pylons behind us), so peaceful were the surroundings that we could hear the electricty crackle overhead. Now that's quiet...
Tonight we are holed up in a delightful place just off Cleeve Common. In the spirit of sharing we have just enjoyed a fabuous meal in the first class restaurant at The Malvern View http://www.malvernview.com/ And so to today's E and F. E is for Einstein and F is for Fish. This morning, a dear friend from Washington DC, who is following our progress, posted a quote on Facebook. We were inspired. As we walked we reflected on how fortunate we were to have the luxury of time, the opportunity to get away and the landscape to explore and these inspirational moments brought us back to that quote,
"Everyone is a genius. but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb trees it will live its life thinking it is stupid."A Einstein
It's been a great day. I'll leave you on that note. G'night.
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